SOAP OPERA ::~~::
by WeakestLink
Summary: This is a really stupid fanfic about Jody, Cooper, and Charlie. Please read and review! =:^)
1. =:^)

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Author's Note: I wrote this at 3am one night. I can't remember actually typing half of this. I swear- I thought I had written something about Erik getting a cat. How weird is that? Anyway, I wanted a stupid fanfiction, so here we go. But, this is my last "Center Stage" fanfic. I just wrote this and wanted to post it to see if you thought it was good or stupid. Good fight, good night.

I don't own anything from "Center Stage"… or "Celebrity Deathmatch". I just like that thingy at the end. C~ya.

One

Jody stood outside her apartment building, saying goodnight to Charlie.

"Are you sure your ok??" Charlie asked, bringing her under the small roof as it started to rain.

"I'm fine, Charlie. I just had a bit of a headache. Sorry about all that. I'll probably be fine by tomorrow."

"Well, ok then. Good-night Jody." Charlie gave her a quick kiss and stepped quickly out into the rain to get a cab.

Jody took out her key and unlocked the door, hating the fact that she had had to lie to Charlie. She didn't really have a headache, she had a bad feeling. As she climbed the stairs to her own apartment, the feeling grew. She unlocked her door and stepped in. Just as she had expected, bad news was waiting for her. Cooper Nielson.

Jody sighed and shut the door behind her. "Cooper, how on Earth did you get in here? And why are you here? And… what do you think you are doing, smoking in my apartment?"

"What? You let Eva do it, don't you?"

"Yeah, but that's my point. You never smoke unless something's wrong. So, what's wrong?"

Cooper shrugged and sat on the couch. He propped his feet up on the table and looked up at Jody. "Nothing's wrong. So, what's up with you? We haven't talked in so long, I only see you at the company."

Jody sat next to him. "Nothing's going on, Cooper. I just got back from a date with Charlie. But, really Coop, why are you here?"

"Charlie Simms, huh? You still with him? How long has it been now?"

Jody smiled and shook her head. "About 3 months Coop. Now, please tell me before I kick you out, what the hell are you doing here?"

"I love you, Jody."

Jody stared at him for a minute without saying anything. "Cooper… you cheated on me. You treated me like shit. And now you expect me to take you back?"

"No… I just thought you should know. I've always loved you Jody… well, since I met you. You're so beautiful and talented and nice and… smart and everything else. I deserved everything that you did to me after that night, and I'm really sorry."

Jody glared at Cooper. "I'm not about to fall for that stupid… fake… charm or whatever you wanna call it. You have your pick of any other girl in the whole city. I'm with Charlie now, so just leave me alone. What did you expect me to do? Run into your arms and tell you that I love you? Break up with Charlie and come into work tomorrow and just tell the whole world that I love you?"

"Look Jody! I just thought you should know how I feel about you. Sorry if that was the wrong thing to do! I just… I can't live without you. I can't sleep at night, I can't eat. I can't even dance anymore. This is killing me inside. The only thing I can say is that I hope you do come to the company tomorrow and keep on dancing there. You're easily my best dancer, my company can't do anything without you."

Jody stood up and looked down at him. "Good-night Cooper."

"Night Jody…" Cooper stood up and gave Jody a strong good-bye kiss before leaving. The weird thing was, Jody didn't even push him off… she actually, dare she think it, liked it. She had forgotten how it felt to be in the arms of the one and only Cooper Nielson. To kiss him and think that he was the only one for you… Jody shook her head.

Why was she fanaticizing about Cooper? Just 30 minutes ago she was obsessing over Charlie and how wonderful _he_ was… and Charlie was great. But now, what was she supposed to do? Just go on dancing with Cooper and dating Charlie like nothing had changed? Jody shut the door and was about to go into her room when the phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Jody is that you?"

"Oh, Charlie. Yeah, it's me. Why?"

"You sound kinda weird. Are you ok?"

"I'm fine. Uh, why are you calling? You're home already?"

"Yeah- that cab driver is amazingly fast."

"Sure, Charlie. Um, is something wrong?"

"No, not really. I just wanted to say good-night."

"You already did that, remember? It started to rain outside and you took me under the ledge and said good-night."

"Yeah, I know. Look, Jody, you really do sound weird. Are you sure everything's alright?"

"I'm fine. Just… still have a little bit of a headache."

"Oh, alright. Well, go get some rest then."

Jody smiled. "Ok. Night Charlie."

"Good-night Jody."

Jody hung up the phone, going back into her wonderful Charlie state of mind for a minute. Then she remembered Cooper and went back and forth for more than an hour, really giving herself a headache, before she finally fell asleep.


	2. =:^)

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Author's Note: I wrote this second part just to see what you'd all say. I'm writing it on a Saturday night, but I won't post it for awhile because I JUST posted the first part. Ummm… I don't really know why I'm even finishing this, because it's kinds weird. Oh well.

I don't own anything from "Center Stage".

****

Two

Jody hurried into her apartment and slammed the door. She sat down on the couch and crossed her arms. Charlie walked in a minute later and shut the door quietly. He looked at Jody, not sure what to do.

"Look, Jody, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to blow up in your face like that. I guess… I guess it just bugs me that you and Cooper are still around each other so much. I mean, everyday at his company and now what you said about last week when he came to your apartment. I mean… I guess I was just a little jealous."

"That's exactly why I didn't want to tell you what I was thinking about Charlie. I knew you'd get like this. But you made me tell you."

"I just wanted to know what was wrong. I'm worried about you, I've never seen you like this before. I just wanna help." Charlie sat down next to Jody and took her hands in his.

Jody smiled. "Ok… I'm sorry. I'm just stressed I guess."

Charlie kissed her softly. "It's ok. So, what did Cooper have to say that night anyway?"

Jody shook her head. "Come on, Charlie. I don't wanna do this again."

"Please, I won't get mad this time, I swear."

"No, Charlie. I know you'll get mad and I don't wanna do this again. I'm to tired to fight."

"We won't fight!! I promise."

Jody could see that Charlie was determined to find out what Cooper had said, so she figured it was better for her to tell him instead of someone else- like Cooper. "Um… he said he loved me." Jody closed her eyes and waiting for the big blow up.

Charlie sighed deeply and let go of Jody's hands. He sunk deep into the couch and clenched his eyes tight. "Oh. I see."

"See, I knew I shouldn't have told you."

"I'm not mad! Do I sound mad? I'm not mad! Just, what did you say?"

"I told him I wasn't going to take him back because I was with you and he cheated on me."

Charlie's face softened a bit and his body relaxed. "Good… that's good."

Jody smiled and rested her head on Charlie's head. "Please don't freak out and go beat Cooper up or something weird like that."

Charlie smiled and stoked Jody's hand. "I won't. But, can I say something without you thinking it's just out of defense? Because I wanted to tell you, but now it would seem like I was just trying to make a point of you being my girlfriend."

"Sure Charlie, go a head, what is it?"

"Uh…" Charlie stammered out nervously. "You know what? Nevermind. It's not that important."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

"Ok." Jody nodded and yawned.

"Tired?" Charlie asked.

"A bit." Jody admitted.

"Me too. I guess I should get back home." Charlie sat up straight and looked at Jody.

"Ok. Good-night Charlie." Jody leaned forward and kissed Charlie. A shiver went down Charlie's spine and he smiled as he pulled back.

"I love you Jody."

Jody looked at Charlie for a moment, speechless. "Uh- I- I love you too Charlie." Jody hugged Charlie tightly and gave him another kiss. "I love you too."

Charlie smiled. "Mmm… your hair smells wonderful."

Jody giggled and pulled back. "Thanks, I think. So, was that what you wanted to tell me a minute ago?"

"Yeah." Charlie nodded and gave her a small kiss. "Night Jody." Charlie stood up and moved over to the door.

Jody followed and kissed him again, not wanting him to go. "Good-night Charlie. I love you."

"I love you too Jody. Good-night." Charlie gave her one last kiss, then forced himself to leave.

Jody shut the door and leaned against it happily. She rushed over to her couch and picked up the phone. She heard the dial tone and dialed a second later.

"Hello?"

"Eva!! Guess what??" Jody exclaimed.

"Calm down Jody! What's up? Did you and Charlie finally do it or something?"

"No… Eva, that's not why I'm calling. Um… Charlie said he loves me!!"

"And this is news to you?" Eva asked.

"What?"

"Nevermind. So, what happened?"

"Um, Last week Cooper came to my apartment and told me that he loved me and Charlie made me tell him tonight. Then we got into this fight and he chased me all the way back to my apartment. Then we talked a while and he kissed me and then he just said, 'I love you Jody'. It was so romantic!"

"Right. So, what did you say?"

"I was completely freaking out inside my head. And then I realized that I had fallen in love… so I just said it back. Eva, you should have seen it, it was so sweet. He just left like 2 minutes ago."

"And let me guess! You miss him already?"

"No! Well, yeah, actually." Jody smiled and yawned again. "Well, good-night Eva."

"Good-night Jody."

Jody hung up the phone and went into her bedroom. She changed and climbed under the warm covers. Falling asleep, she thought of Charlie and he lips curled up into a smile.


	3. =:^)

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Author's Note: I decided to continue writing this because I have about 10 more chapters already written. See, I went on vacation and had nothing better to do in the LONG car drive was write and think of more chapters. So, here we go. Oh, and I know not much happens in this chapter, I'm just building up for part 4. Bye!

I don't own anything from "Center Stage".

Three

Jody walked into her apartment just as the phone rang. She out her bag down and relaxed on the couch, letting the machine get the call. She picked up her cat, Shoelace, (they allowed cats, birds, and other small things like that in her apartment- just no dogs) and stroked her soft black fur.

"Hi, this is Jody Sawyer! I'm not here, so leave a message and I'll call you write back!"

"Jody, it's Charlie. I guess you're still at Cooper's company. Um, call me when you get home. Love you, bye."

Jody smiled to herself and switched on the tv. Shoelace jumped off her lap and went to sit on the small windowsill. Several minutes later the phone rang again.

"Hello?"

** The Next Night **

Charlie and Jody walked into his apartment hand in hand. Charlie shut the door, and when he turned around, Jody was lying across the small couch. Charlie smiled and sat down on floor by her head.

"I am so tired!" Jody reported.

Charlie smiled again. "Then why don't you go home?"

"Because… this couch is really warm."

"Really?" Charlie reached up and ran his fingers through her soft blond hair.

"Hmmm…" Jody smiled contently. "Oh! I almost forgot to tell you, my parents called yesterday."

Charlie withdrew his hand. "Yeah, so?"

"I'm gonna go visit them this weekend. I'm flying down tomorrow. And I was wondering if you'd come in to my apartment and feed Shoelace while I'm gone."

"Uh… sure. When do you come back?"

"Oh, I'm not going to long. I get back Sunday night."

"Well, ok, have fun."

Jody smiled and sat up. "Well, night Charlie."

Charlie stood up and pulled Jody up by her hands. "Bye. I love you." He gave her a good-bye kiss and watched as she left.


	4. =:^)

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I don't own anything to do with "Center Stage".

Four

Jody knocked on the large brown wooden door to her parent's 3- story house. Her father opened the door and hugged Jody.

"Hi Jody! Welcome home. How have you been? How's New York?"

Jody stepped inside and shut the door. "Hi Dad. I'm fine… New York's great. Um, where is everyone?"

Living in the large stone house was Mr. and Mrs. Sawyer, Nick and Michelle- twin 13 year old they had adopted, and two dogs- Captain Carpool (C.C. for short- Nick and Michelle's dog) and Jody's black palmeranian, Rascal.

As on cure, Nick, Michelle, C.C., and Rascal all came running to the front door. Jody hugged the twins and greeted the dogs.

Michelle took Jody's bag up to Jody's old room and Nick managed to get the hyper dogs into the backyard.

"Where's mom?" Jody asked.

Mr. Sawyer stepped slowly forward. "She's resting upstairs honey. She's been pretty sick lately, we're not quite sure what's wrong yet. But next week we have yet _another_ doctor's appointment, and hopefully they'll be able to tell us something then."

"Oh…" Jody in shock. "Can I see her?"

"Oh, sure! Come on." He led Jody up the stairs and opened the door to his room

Jody stepped in and walked over to the bed. "Hey mom."

Mrs. Sawyer smiled and sat up slightly. She hugged Jody and said, "Hi Jody! When did you get here?"

"Only about 5 minutes ago. So, how are you?"

"Right now I'm feeling pretty good actually. But what about you, what's New York like?"

Mr. Sawyer left at this point.

Jody walked around the double bed and sat on the other side. "New York is wonderful. It's so fun!"

"How's… um… that company director of yours?"

"Cooper Nielson? He's, uh, fine. A little insane, but fine."

Jody's mom nodded. "I'm glad you're enjoying yourself sweetie. Do you have a lot of new friends?"

Jody smiled. "Oh, plenty. There's Eva, and Erik, and Charlie. And then there's Sergei and Galina, but they live in California now."

"Oh, wow. And do they _all_ dance?"

"Yeah. Eva, Erik, and Charlie are all in ABC."

"Great, they all sound wonderful. But, uh, no boyfriend then, huh?"

Jody smiled. "Oh, well, actually I do. It's Charlie, the one at ABC, and he's so great. You'd love him mom."

"How long have you been together?"

"Almost 4 months now." Jody reported happily. "But I met him my first day in New York, at ABA."

"Oh, wow. Would I have seen him dance in any of the workshops?"

"Yeah, mine actually. Cooper played the blond rebel and Charlie was the other guy."

"Oh, he's very talented."

"Yeah… I know."

"JODY!!!" Someone called from the 3rd floor.

Jody smiled. "Great to be back." She joked, getting up. "I'll see you later mom."9


	5. =:^)

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Author's Note: I had several chapters planned out in my head, but I realized they are all pretty pointless. So this is my pathetic attempt to combine them so you're not bored. Here goes!

I own nothing from "Center Stage".

****

Five

Jody sat on her old waterbed and picked up the cordless phone.

"Hello?"

"Hi Charlie!"

"Oh, hey Jody! You're there already?" Charlie asked.

"Yeah, I've been here for a few hours."

"Oh. So, how was the flight?"

"Pretty good. At least no one threw up, like when I first came to New York."

Charlie laughed. "Sounds good. And, how's everyone there?"

"Um, ok. Everyone's fine except my mom. She's really sick and they don't know what's wrong yet."

"Oh, Jody, I'm so sorry."

Jody shrugged. "Thanks Charlie. You wanna know something weird?"

"What?"

"We've gone 2 weeks with out seeing each other. But, for some reason, I miss you already."

Charlie smiled. "I miss you too."

"Look, my parents are paying for this, so I really should get off the phone."

"Ok. I'll see you Sunday night then, right?"

"Yeah. Bye."

"Bye Jody. I love you."

Jody smiled. "I love you too. Bye Charlie." Jody hung up the phone on the bed stand and smiled.

Michelle walked in and plopped down on Jody's bed. "I really like your bed."

Jody smiled. "So, how have you been? I haven't seen you in over a year!"

"I've been ok. No boyfriend though." Michelle said sadly.

"Well, you don't need a boyfriend to be happy… besides, I'm sure you'll get one soon."

Michelle shrugged. "Do you have a boyfriend?"

"Yeah."

"That's not fair!!"

Jody laughed. "I'm also 6 years older than you."

"Well… how old is he? What's his name? What does he do? Tell me everything!!" Michelle commanded excitedly.

Jody smiled. "Well then, let me see. He's 19, just like me, and his name is Charlie. He's a dancer."

"Wow. What's he like?"

"He's a few inches taller than me and he has dark brown hair. He has these perfectly gorgeous light blue eyes. He's really really sweet, and he's funny too."

"Is he cute?"

"He's very cute." Jody replied smiling.

"How long have you been dating? Do you have his picture?"

"We've been together about 4 months."

"Oh! Are you gonna get married?"

Jody couldn't help but laugh at that. "Maybe, I dunno. We _just_ started going out."

"Oh, but do you have a picture?"

"Probably, let me check." Jody picked up her purse off the floor and dug through it. She pulled out a picture and smiled at it. "I found one."

Michelle snatched it up and stared at it. "Oh! Jody! He's cute! He is… incredibly cute!"

Jody smiled and took the picture back. "Yeah… he's great."

"Is that who you were talking to on the phone."

"Yeah."

"So, do you love him?" Michelle asked slyly.

Jody smiled and looked at Michelle, not sure what to say. "Yeah, I do. But you can't tell anyone because I don't want mom and dad to get all freaked out, ok?"

"Sure!" Michelle agreed happily.

"Ok. Go on and go to bed, it's late."

"Ok. Night Jody." Michelle got up and left Jody alone.

Jody looked down at the small picture of Charlie. She tacked it up to the empty bulletin board on her wall and went to bed.

Jody walked out of the gate at the airport late that Sunday night. Charlie was there waiting for her, with a bouquet of roses. He kissed Jody and handed her the flowers.

"What are these for?" Jody asked.

Charlie shrugged happily. "Because I love you and I wasn't sure if you'd be ok with your mom and all. Come on, we have to get your bag. And we have to get you home, it's late."

"Oh yeah, I need my beauty sleep." Jody said jokingly.

"Not that you need it, you're already beautiful. Come on." Charlie took her hand and they walked through the airport.

~~~~* A YEAR LATER *~~~~

Jody returned from her monthly visit to her parents. She locked her apartment door and took a long shower.

She was going to have to break up with Charlie, leave the Cooper Nielson Dance Company, and move back to Indiana.

There was no way her dad could handle everything in that house, and his job, on his own. Both he and Jody's mom were teachers. Mrs. Sawyer taught elementary school and Mr. Sawyer taught at a high school. Now, he had 2 now-14-year-olds, 2 dogs, a very sick wife (who obviously wasn't working, and his job. Not to mention all the normal stuff he usually did, plus the extra stuff that his wife usually did.

Jody sighed and turned off the shower. She dried off and changed. She crawled under the warm covers like a bug and cried herself to sleep.


	6. =:^)

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Six

The next night Jody sat on Charlie's couch, next to Charlie. They were watching a movie, and when it ended Jody switched off the tv. She turned to Charlie and he noticed her nervousness.

"Something wrong?" Charlie asked.

"Gee Charlie, nothing gets past you. But I actually do need to talk to you."

"What is it?"

"Well, you know my mom's been pretty sick, right? Which means my dad has to take car of her, Nick, Michelle, and our two dogs. So-"

"Whoa, wait. Who are Nick and Michelle?"

"I never told you? Well, Nick and Michelle are twins. We adopted them and now they are 14."

Charlie nodded. "Cool. So, uh, what were you saying?"

"Well, now my dad has all those things, plus his job and about 10 million other things to deal with everyday. So, uh," Jody sighed deeply. "God, this is hard. Um, I'm gonna leave Cooper's company and… move back to Indiana to help my dad." Jody bit her lip and looked up at Charlie.

"Are you serious?"

Jody nodded sadly. "I'm very serious. And I think… I think it'd be better if we broke up." Jody said quickly and looked down. "Just, you know, since I'll be so far away and all."

Charlie looked at Jody, not sure what to say. "I… well, ok. If you really think it's for the best."

Jody stood up slowly and glanced down at Charlie. "Well, I'm leaving next week, so… good-night Charlie. Good-bye."

Charlie stood up and looked into her blue eyes. He kissed her softly and said, "Bye Jody. You know I'll always love you."

Jody, starting to cry, picked up her purse and walked out of Charlie's apartment.

Less than two weeks later…

Jody had moved back into her old room on the 3rd floor of her old house in Indiana. She didn't redecorate or anything, just put her clothes in the closet and set up a few framed pictures on the desk.

She kept the picture on the bulletin board, crying herself to sleep every night as she looked at it.

One night, several months later, Michelle walked by Jody's room on her way back from the bathroom. She walked in to Jody's room. Startled, Jody sat up and wiped her eyes.

"Oh, it's just you Michelle. Don't scare me like that!"

Michelle sat down on Jody's bed. "Sorry. Why are you crying? Is it because of mom?"

"No, no, of course not. Mom's getting a lot better, didn't we tell you that? That's why she was able to come back from the hospital last week."

"Yeah, I know. But then why are you crying?"

Jody shrugged. "I guess I just miss New York. It wouldn't be as bad if my old friends were still here, but they all moved away to college."

"You miss dancing?"

"Yeah, I do. Sometimes, I dance up here when I'm alone. So, when I ever get the chance to go back to New York… I'll have a small chance of being able to dance again. I mean, I lost a pretty important year doing this, not that I mind, this is a lot more important. But Cooper would never let me back in his company, and even if he does, I wouldn't be principal. That is, unless Cooper has another stupid lovesick trick up his sleeve."

"What?"

"Never mind."

"What about Charlie?" Michelle asked slowly.

"We broke up ages ago."

"When?"

"Right before I came here. It's a long way from New York and… it's kinda complicated."

"Do you miss him?"

Jody paused a moment, then nodded. "Yeah, I do. I probably miss him the most. I never have time to think about it, and I try to keep myself busy. But, when it's night, I have forever to think about how much I miss him. Cold nights are the hardest."

"Why?" Michelle asked, getting more interested.

"Because this one night, we were walking down this street and it was absolutely freezing. It must have been zero degrees. He put his arm around me, to try and warm me up. His bare skin was freezing cold, but…" Jody closed her eyes and bit her lip. "My whole body was just instantly warm…" Jody sighed and shook her head. "That probably sounds really cheesy."

"No it doesn't. You really loved him, didn't you? Did he love you?"

Jody nodded tearfully. "Yes, but you're too young to understand. I know you hate hearing that, especially from me, but it's true. You're 14. I'll be 21 next week. So don't worry about me, I'll be fine. But you should go to bed. It's late and you have-"

"I have school tomorrow. Yeah, yeah, I know. Night Jody." Michelle hugged her and left.


	7. =:^)

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Seven

The next week went on like the many before it. Jody woke up, took a shower, and ate breakfast. She drove Nick and Michelle to school, then came home. She'd take care of her mom, the dogs, and sometimes the shopping and cooking. Nick and Michelle rode the bus home, where Jody would be waiting. She'd drive them where ever they wanted to go, and then they had dinner. After dinner was when Jody usually did her dancing. Then she'd to go bed and do it all again the next day.

That Friday was Jody's 21st birthday. Mr. Sawyer insisted that Jody had the day to herself. Jody took the opportunity and went to see and movie and go shopping for herself. When she got home, she called Eva and talked to her for a few hours.

When Nick and Michelle got home, Jody took them out to rent some movies and get frozen ice cream for after dinner. Nick settled in the den on the first floor to watch his movie, while Michelle went to the small den on the 3rd floor to watch her movie. Jody checked on her mom, them went to watch her movie in her room.

Halfway through her movie, Jody heard the doorbell. Jody knew that no one else would bother to get it, so she stopped her movie and ran down the 2 flights of stairs. She swung open the front door.

Charlie was standing outside, holding a bouquet of pink thornless roses (I forgot what they are called). He offered the roses to Jody and said, "Happy Birthday Jody."

Jody took the bouquet and set the down quickly on a small table. She flung her arms around Charlie and hugged him tightly.

"What on Earth are you doing here?" Jody stepped back.

Charlie smiled and joked, "Are you going to let me in?"

"Oh, right, of course." Jody let Charlie in and shut the heavy door. "Now, what are you doing here? I can't believe you still remembered my birthday!"

"May 22nd- Jody Sawyer's birthday. How could I forget?"

Jody smiled and looked him over. "You look great, where'd you get that great tan?"

"ABC toured Hawaii about 2 weeks ago."

"Oh. Um, sorry I didn't do anything for your 21st birthday back in February. I just figured-"

"Don't explain, it's fine, really. I had enough birthday to last me until next year."

Jody smiled. "Oh really, why's that?"

"Erik, Eva, and a bunch of them threw my this huge party. And I swear, there must have been 50 cases of anything with alcohol. It was insane."

"Sounds fun. All I've gotten to do was see a movie, go shopping, and call Eva."

"Well, come on then. Even though I have no idea where anything is, I'm sure we can find something fun to do."

"Well, that does sound really great. But, I dunno. My mom… well, I really should stay here with Michelle and Nick. But, um, it'd probably be ok if we went to walk the dogs."

Charlie shrugged. "Ok, sounds great."

Jody smiled excitedly. "Ok! Just let me put these beautiful flowers in some water and get the dogs. Stay here!" Jody picked up the roses and ran into the kitchen.

Several minutes later Jody came back, pulling two dogs already on their leashes over to Charlie. She handed on of the leashes to Charlie.

"You can walk Nick and Michelle's corgi. His name is C.C."

"What does that stand for?"

"Uh, Captain Carpool. Don't ask, long story."

Charlie smiled and opened the front door. "Ok. And who do you have there?"

Jody walked outside and slammed the door shut behind her. "This is my dog, Rascal." Jody noticed a blue car in their driveway. "Oh, you drove he whole way here?"

"No, I flew. I just rented that car at the airport. By the way, whatever happened to Shoelace?"

"I brought her down here with me, but we quickly found out that both Nick and Michelle are allergic to cats. So I gave I gave her to my friend Abbey. Then Abbey moved away and took Shoelace with her. So, she's somewhere in London. Either that or dead."

"London? That's a long move."

"Yeah… Abbey's goal in life is to date a man from every continent."

Charlie laughed. "That's pretty interesting." Charlie sighed and glanced at Jody. "I-I've missed you Jody."

Jody looked at him and smiled. "I've missed you too Charlie, so much."

Charlie took her free hand and held it loosely as they walked around the block.


	8. =:^)

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Eight

When Charlie and Jody returned from walking the dogs, they let them inside and went into the kitchen. Jody was about to offer Charlie something to drink when Michelle called for her. Jody shrugged and excused herself from Charlie. She ran up to the 3rd floor and into the den.

"What?" Jody asked, slightly out of breath.

"Where did you go?"

"Uh, just walking the dogs.

"By yourself?"

"No, I have a visitor."

"Oh, who!?" Michelle asked, stopping her movie.

"Charlie Simms." Jody said, unable to hide the excitement in her voice.

"From New York! No way!"

"Yeah, but I wanna talk to him, so don't bug us, ok?"

"Ok." Michelle nodded and Jody went back down stairs.

"Do you want something to drink Charlie?" Jody asked, entering the kitchen.

"Um, sure. Just ice water would be great." Charlie said.

"Ok." Jody put ice into two glasses and filled them with water. "Here." She handed one to Charlie and set the other one down for herself.

"Thanks." Charlie said, taking a sip.

"So, what exactly are you doing here Charlie?"

"I'm really not sure. On the plane I had everything planned out perfectly. But, as soon as I saw you again my mind went blank and I have no idea what I'm doing." Charlie admitted quietly. "All I know is that I really want to kiss you right now."

Jody smiled. "No one's stopping you."

Charlie grinned and stepped forward. He about to kiss her, but was stopped by Michelle's shrill voice.

"JODY!!! COME QUICK!!! IT'S MOM!!!"

Jody closed her eyes and sighed deeply. "Hold that thought." She mumbled and raced up to the 2nd floor.

Nick heard to and ran through the kitchen on his way to the stairs. He stopped quickly when he saw Charlie standing there.

"Uh, hey. Who are you?"

Less than 15 minutes later, Jody watched as the ambulance drive her mom off to the hospital. They had called Mr. Sawyer and he was driving straight there. So Jody was stuck at home with 2 hyper dogs that Nick had forgotten to feed, 2 14-year-old who were worried sick… and Charlie.


	9. =:^)

::~~:: SOAP OPERA ::~~:: ****

::~~:: SOAP OPERA ::~~::

Nine

Jody stood in the doorway and let the dogs out into the front yard, their leashes tied to the metal lamppost.

"Didn't we just walk them?" Charlie appeared behind Jody.

Jody spun around. "Yeah, but these dogs go 24/7. They're insanely hyper, all the time."

Charlie nodded and sat on the 3 small steps leading up to the house. "I thought you said your mom was doing better."

Jody sat next to him and rested her head on his shoulder. "She was doing really bad until like 2 weeks ago. Then she was suddenly doing like 90% better. So, we all kinda knew something was off, and figured something else was gonna happen."

"Oh." Charlie put his arm around Jody. "I'm sure everything will be fine."

"I'd really like to think that. But… I just have this really bad feeling."

Charlie kissed the top of Jody's head softly. Jody lifted her head and smiled at him. He leaned in closer and kissed her.

A few minutes later Nick and Michelle appeared in the doorway behind them.

"Oh get a room." Nick said.

Jody pulled away from Charlie and blushed. "Hi Michelle, Nick. Um, this is Charlie Simms." Jody said awkwardly.

"Don't we know it." Michelle said.

Charlie shrugged at Jody and stood up. Then he helped Jody to her feet.

"Michelle, Nick, can you let the dogs inside? I'm gonna go sit by the phone up in my room incase Dad calls or something." Jody ran inside and up to her room.

Charlie watched her leave and then turned to the other two. "Well, it was nice meeting you. I'll see you later I guess." Charlie smiled at them and walked up the stairs.

Michelle turned to her brother. "Jody loves him."

"Really?"

Michelle nodded.

~~~~* 2 DAYS LATER *~~~~

Jody woke up and rolled over. Charlie was lying there, which startled her.

"Charlie, how'd you get here?"

"I walked up the stairs. The guestroom is only on the 2nd floor.

Jody smiled and kissed him. "Well, good-morning Charlie. Sleep well?"

"Like a log?"

Jody giggled and rolled out of her waterbed. "I'm gonna go take a shower, ok?"

"Ok, have fun."

Jody picked up her pillow and threw it at Charlie. She walked into her bathroom and took a shower. She blow dried her hair and changed into gray cotton hip huggers and a blue tank top. She walked back into her room and Charlie looked up.

"Wow Jody, you look great."

Jody lay back down and kissed him again. "I slept in this outfit a month ago and you think I look great?"

Charlie smiled. "I think you look really great."

"How long are you staying here?"

"Well, I have enough clothes for a while, but it's already Sunday. So, I probably should get back someday soon."

"Oh, ok. So, so how's Jon-" The phone rang, cutting Jody off. "Uh, hold on." She sat and picked up the phone. "Hello?" Uh, yes." Jody shooed Charlie out and he left.

Several minutes later Charlie went back into Jody's room and found her crying on her bed. He instantly sat down and wrapped her in a hug.

"What's wrong?"

Jody buried her face in Charlie's chest and sobbed. Charlie's stomach tied itself into a knot to see her like this. He hugged her tightly and she eventually calmed down.

When she eventually pulled back she managed to say, "My mom… she died."

Charlie was in shock. He hugged her again and kissed her forehead.

"Charlie, I don't blame you if you wanna dump me now. Not that we were ever really back together, but oh well. I mean, I'll probably have to stay here even longer now. So, I mean, you can just go back to New York and forget about me."

Charlie, hurt, looked into Jody's teary blue eyes and shook his head. "I can't believe you'd think I'd ever leave you Jody, especially now. I… I love you too much. That's what I came back up here to say, cause I wasn't sure if you'd figured that out yet. I mean, I came to Indiana to see you, and to tell you that I love you. I've never stopped loving you. The minute you left all I've wanted to do is come here and be with you. You have no idea how lonely New York is without you."

Jody smiled slightly. "I love you too Charlie." She bit her lip and sighed deeply.

"Jody… I love you. And I just don't know what to do. I really should get back to New York soon, before Jonathan has a cow. But I can't leave you, especially not now."

Jody shook her head. "Charlie, you have to go back to New York. You live there, you work there. I'll be fine… eventually. But you _have_ to go back!"

Charlie closed his eyes and asked, "Are you sure?"

"Yes, you should go. You should go today."

"How about if I go tomorrow?"

"Ok." Jody agreed quietly.

Charlie held her closer as she cried softly.

"How am I going to tell Nick and Michelle?"

"I don't know… you wanna try finding them first?"

Jody smiled and wiped her eyes. "Yeah."

Charlie pulled Jody off the bed and held her hand as they walked down stairs.

"Nick! Michelle!" Jody called out.

The twins came running from the den. Jody bit her lip and Charlie squeezed her hand.

"Um, guys, I just got a call from the hospital. And, um, mom's… she's gone."

Michelle stared at her. "You mean she's dead?"

Jody nodded and closed her eyes. Nick shoved past Jody and ran up to his room. Michelle followed shortly. Jody sighed and turned to Charlie, tears forming again.

"That went well."

Charlie leaned forward and kissed Jody.

Charlie left the next day, making Jody even sadder. She spent the next week locked in her room, for more than one obvious reason.


	10. =:^)

::~~:: SOAP OPERA ::~~:: ****

::~~:: SOAP OPERA ::~~::

Ten

A week after Charlie left, Jody lay in her bed reading through all the letters and notes Charlie had written her while they were together.

__

Jody,

I went and talked to Cooper today. I know I promised you last night that I wouldn't do anything crazy, but I couldn't help it. It wasn't that crazy though. I just went up and talked to him. I told him I understood and can appreciate that he has feelings for and… well, then I sorta exploded on him.

I'm really sorry Jody, I was trying really hard not to. I guess it just kinda all broke to the surface. But, at least he won't try to come on to you anymore… I hope. I kinda got the feeling he didn't care what I had to say. So much for that.

I don't know why I'm writing you this. I'm going to see you tonight and I could just always tell you then. Oh well. I love you.

Love,

Charlie

Jody smiled and folded up the letter. She unfolded another one and was about halfway through it when there was a lock on her door. She dropped the paper and opened the door. He dad came in and hugged her. He sat down on the bed and Jody sat next to him.

"Jody, I've been thinking. It's really not fair for us to ask you to stay any longer. You're 21 years old and you need a life of your own."

"But… you're not asking me, I want to stay. I love all of you and I want to help you. I know this is hard and I just wanna… I dunno."

"Jody, honey, that's… unnecessary. We'll be fine as long as you visit- not all the time though. Trust me."

"But, I can't go back to New York."

"Why not?"

"Because… I'm scared." Jody admitted.

"Scared? Of what?"

"Of everything! I'm scared that Cooper won't let me dance! I'm scared that everything will be different. And I'm mostly scared of… getting my hear broken." Jody said quietly, immediately wishing she hadn't.

"What?"

"Nevermind Dad, nevermind."

"Does this have anything to do with that young man that was here last week?"

Jody shrugged. "His name is Charlie."

"Well, whatever his name is, he's luck to have you. And you should go back to New York."

Jody nodded. "Ok Dad, if you really want me too."

"Great! You can leave next week!" Mr. Sawyer kissed his daughter's forehead and left.

~~~~* ONE WEEK LATER *~~~~

Jody stepped out of the gate and into the crowded airport. She stood to the side and looked around.

"JODY! OVER HERE!" Someone called out.

Jody spun around and pushed her way through the crowd. Eva, Erik, and Charlie were standing there. Jody hugged Eva and Erik, then turned to Charlie.

Charlie hugged her tightly and kissed her. Jody wrapped herself in Charlie and they just stood there like that for a few minutes.

Eva and Erik looked on, but got bored quickly.

"Charlie! Jody! I really hate to break this up, but we should get Jody's bags or something."

Jody stepped back and looked into Charlie's deep blue eyes. Charlie put his arm around Jody as they walked down to baggage claim.

"So," Eva asked, "How's your dad?"

"He's ok, I guess. It's only been a week, so… they're all still taking it pretty hard…"

"I love you Jody." Charlie whispered in Jody's ear.

"Yeah, I know that Charlie." Jody said, pulling out of Charlie's arms. "But that doesn't fix everything." She walked ahead to keep her distance.


End file.
